| Window | Dates | Days |
|---|---|---|
| Window 1 | 01 SEP – 11 OCT 2026 | 41d |
| Window 2 | 02 NOV – 15 NOV 2026 | 14d |
| Window 3 | 07 DEC 2026 – 10 JAN 2027 | 35d |
As publishedSept 1 - Oct 11, 2026; Nov 2 - 15, 2026; Dec 7, 2026 - Jan 10, 2027
3-way split season.Shooting hours are noon-sunset on the Sept 1 opener only, then half-hour-before-sunrise to sunset for the rest of the season. A portion of Stonewall Jackson WMA is under special controlled-hunt permit Sept 1-2 (applications were due Aug 1, 2026). HIP registration required.
No sub-state regional distinction exists for mourning dove in West Virginia; the distribution is uniform statewide. WVDNR's own outdoor magazine (Wonderful West Virginia, 'Dove-Tales of Success') states its managed dove-field program spans 96 WMAs across six districts and that named prime dove-hunting areas are located all over the state, naming flagship managed dove fields in every corner of West Virginia with no region emphasized over another: Hillcrest WMA (Hancock County, northern panhandle), South Branch WMA (Hardy/Hampshire counties, eastern Potomac Highlands), Stonewall Jackson WMA (Lewis County, north-central), and McClintic WMA (Mason County, southwestern Ohio River Valley), plus general references to the Eastern Panhandle and Greenbrier Valley. The program is evenly distributed by design.
West Virginia dove numbers are down over the last decade, at -2.28% per year from 2016 to 2025 on the federal survey. That runs against the state's long-term record, which is the strongest in the Eastern Management Unit at +2.73% per year across 59 years. The state built a large population over decades and has been giving some of it back recently. These figures run through 2025, one season behind this fall.
Recent decade down 2.28% per year, reversing the unit's strongest long-term gain.
Join the waitlist and tell us what you’re working on — the planner reads it first once your access opens.
Free, invite-gated, unsubscribe anytime. See what it returns